The Baby of Their Dreams (Contemporary Medical Romance) by Carol Marinelli Page B

silver and the rest in a matt finish...’
    Silver moonlight hues had appealed but as Veronica went to clear some space so they could put together samples she moved a book and suddenly it wasn’t those colours that Cat wanted.
    ‘I haven’t seen this,’ she said.
    ‘It’s only just in...’
    ‘Oh, my,’ Cat said. She could almost feel the pulse from the sample book as she turned the pages. It was like being walked blindfolded and then having it removed and finding herself standing in a spring park. Birds, butterflies and tree branches that stretched and flowers, endless flowers...
    It reminded her of Collserola and that one magical morning and she certainly didn’t need such a constant reminder, except...
    ‘Would this be a feature wall?’ Cat checked, and then almost winced when the assistant pulled up some images on her computer screen.
    Every wall was covered. In some of the images even the ceilings were papered. It was a sort of cross between a cheap Paris hotel and an enchanted wood.
    ‘This is so far removed from what I was planning,’ Cat said, and Veronica nodded.
    ‘You don’t want to know the price.’
    ‘I don’t,’ Cat said, and tried to get back to silver grey. ‘Have you got it in?’
    ‘I do, though it’s incredibly hard to get hold of. It was on a special order but the buyer couldn’t wait and went for something less...’
    ‘Less what?’ Cat asked. ‘Less migraine inducing, less...?’ She let out a breath. ‘Less sexy...?’
    Yes, somehow it was sexy.
    ‘Just less,’ Veronica said.
    It was sold to the guilty conscience that just wanted to revisit that gorgeous morning over and over again.
    A time when the world had been absolutely beautiful.
    Magical even.
    The strange thing, Cat thought as she stepped back a full week later and surveyed her handiwork, the world still was.
    Magical.
    Instead of the muted tones for the bedroom she had chosen colour. And now, in autumn, she stood in the middle of summer and imagined this being her haven when winter came in.
    Yes, that weekend had changed her in a way she was finally accepting.
    ‘Hey, Gemma.’ Cat called her friend, who had so patiently waited for the morose mood to pass by. ‘The bedroom’s finished.’
    Gemma really was a brilliant friend. She came over within an hour, clutching a bottle of champagne and two glasses, and they did a walk through the house. Cat had a photo in each room of what it had looked like before she’d set to work and it was hard to believe now just how bad it had once been.
    As she opened the bedroom door she watched her friend’s jaw drop in absolute amazement as she stepped in.
    ‘I want to live in your bedroom for ever,’ Gemma said.
    ‘Nigel might not be too pleased.’
    ‘He can come too,’ Gemma said. ‘Oh, my, it is beautiful. It’s just stunning. I can’t believe you’ve finished the house.’
    ‘I haven’t yet.’
    ‘Well, it looks pretty perfect to me. What do you still have left to do—the garden?’
    ‘No.’
    Gemma followed Cat out of the master bedroom and down the hallway that no longer creaked when you walked, and she frowned as Cat opened up the guest bedroom.
    It had a dark wooden bed that was dressed in white linen. There was a gorgeous bookcase next to the open fire. On the mantelpiece were beautiful ornaments. Every last piece had been chosen with care.
    ‘But it’s already perfect,’ Gemma said.
    ‘I’m going to make it into a nursery.
    ‘Will it sell better if you do?
    ‘No, I’ve decided against selling.’
    ‘So why are you making it into...?’ The penny was slowly dropping and a rather stunned Gemma halted and turned to her friend.
    Yes, there was magic in nature.
    ‘You’re pregnant?’
    * * *
    There was a long stretch of silence.
    Gemma was an obstetrician and she was used to women finding themselves rather unexpectedly pregnant.
    It seemed today, though, that it was the doctor who was more surprised.
    She was.
    Cat had spent the past few weeks